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What you can ask

Real questions, with what StoreAsk's tools returned for them. These come from our demo store, Demo Coffee Co., which has over a year of made-up orders. Your assistant turns the figures into a short answer and quotes them as they are.

Question

How did sales go in September compared with August?

sales_summary

Demo Coffee Co.: sales, 1 Sep 2026 – 30 Sep 2026

Metric1 Sep 2026 – 30 Sep 20261 Aug 2026 – 31 Aug 2026Change
Net salesUSD 15,507.90USD 14,670.90+5.7%
Orders434437-0.7%
Average order valueUSD 36.33USD 34.18+6.3%
Items sold723740-2.3%
Gross salesUSD 16,001.00USD 15,246.00+5.0%
ReturnsUSD 260.80USD 267.10-2.4%
CouponsUSD 232.30USD 308.00-24.6%
TaxesUSD 0.00USD 0.00n/a
ShippingUSD 2,017.05USD 2,052.75-1.7%
Total salesUSD 17,524.95USD 16,723.65+4.8%
Customers425426-0.2%
Question

Why were sales up in September?

explain_change

Demo Coffee Co.: why net sales changed, 1 Sep 2026 – 30 Sep 2026 vs 1 Aug 2026 – 31 Aug 2026

Net sales: USD 14,670.90 → USD 15,507.90 (+USD 837.00 (+5.7%)).

Orders vs order size (these add up to the change):

  • Fewer orders: -USD 105.77 (-12.6% of the change) — 437 → 434 orders
  • Bigger orders (average order value up): +USD 936.47 (+111.9% of the change) — average order value USD 34.18 → USD 36.33
  • Less refunded: +USD 6.30 (+0.8% of the change)

Products that changed most:

  • Burr Grinder (ID 202): +USD 1,302.90 (+155.7% of the change) — USD 503.10 → USD 1,806.00
  • Ethiopia Yirgacheffe, 12 oz (ID 102): -USD 425.60 (-50.8% of the change) — USD 1,706.20 → USD 1,280.60
  • Pour-Over Dripper (ID 201): -USD 380.80 (-45.5% of the change) — USD 1,257.20 → USD 876.40

Categories that changed most:

  • Brewing Gear (ID 12): +USD 1,226.50 (+146.5% of the change) — USD 3,351.20 → USD 4,577.70
  • Coffee (ID 11): -USD 197.10 (-23.5% of the change) — USD 9,150.20 → USD 8,953.10
  • Merch (ID 14): -USD 145.20 (-17.3% of the change) — USD 1,044.30 → USD 899.10

New vs returning customers that changed most:

  • New customers: +USD 798.90 (+95.4% of the change) — USD 8,888.00 → USD 9,686.90
  • Returning customers: +USD 31.80 (+3.8% of the change) — USD 6,050.00 → USD 6,081.80

Order origins (traffic, or created by the store) that changed most:

  • Direct: +USD 687.20 (+82.1% of the change) — USD 3,142.60 → USD 3,829.80
  • reddit.com (referral): +USD 445.90 (+53.3% of the change) — USD 1,263.40 → USD 1,709.30
  • google (organic search): -USD 275.80 (-33.0% of the change) — USD 5,463.10 → USD 5,187.30

Countries that changed most:

  • US: +USD 1,022.50 (+122.2% of the change) — USD 8,893.60 → USD 9,916.10
  • CA: -USD 427.40 (-51.1% of the change) — USD 2,190.20 → USD 1,762.80
  • DE: -USD 386.00 (-46.1% of the change) — USD 1,305.60 → USD 919.60
Question

What was our margin by category in September?

profit

Demo Coffee Co.: profit on products, 1 Sep 2026 – 30 Sep 2026

This period1 Aug 2026 – 31 Aug 2026
Net sales (products)USD 15,507.90USD 14,670.90
Cost of goodsUSD 6,356.00USD 5,768.00
Gross profitUSD 8,815.30USD 8,388.10
Gross margin58.1%59.3%
Net sales with a known cost97.8%96.5%
CategoryNet salesCostGross profitMargin
CoffeeUSD 8,953.10USD 3,678.00USD 5,275.1058.9%
Brewing GearUSD 4,577.70USD 2,084.00USD 2,493.7054.5%
TeaUSD 1,078.00USD 404.00USD 674.0062.5%
MerchUSD 899.10USD 190.00USD 372.5066.2% (USD 336.60 without cost)

Sold without a known cost (USD 336.60 of net sales, not included in profit):

  • Tote Bag (product 402): USD 336.60, 19 sold
Question

Did the spring coupons bring in new customers?

coupon_performance

Demo Coffee Co.: coupons, 1 Mar 2026 – 31 May 2026

welcome10 (10% off)

  • Orders: 175 (15.2% of all orders)
  • Net sales: USD 5,609.70, average order USD 32.06
  • Discount given: USD 623.30
  • New customers: 160 orders (91.4% of the coupon's orders from identified customers)
  • Gross profit after discount: USD 2,909.00 (margin 53.6%), USD 178.20 of product sales without a known cost
  • Used over 89 days (4 Mar 2026 – 31 May 2026), so there's no clear before to compare the store's sales with

spring20 (20% off)

  • Orders: 123 (10.7% of all orders)
  • Net sales: USD 3,392.00, average order USD 27.58
  • Discount given: USD 848.00
  • New customers: 77 orders (62.6% of the coupon's orders from identified customers)
  • Gross profit after discount: USD 1,515.60 (margin 46.9%), USD 158.40 of product sales without a known cost
  • Whole store, per day: USD 630.06 net sales and 20.7 orders while it was used (1 Apr 2026 – 10 Apr 2026), vs USD 377.62 and 11.7 in the 10 days before (22 Mar 2026 – 31 Mar 2026)

The store-wide figures while a coupon was used line up with it but don't prove it caused the difference; other things may have changed too.

More to try

  • How did sales go last month compared with the month before?
  • Why were sales down last week?
  • Where is our growth coming from this quarter?
  • What did we charge for our best seller last year?
  • Did the last price change on the hoodie work?
  • What is our margin by category?
  • Which customers have stopped buying?
  • Did the SUMMER20 coupon bring in new customers?
  • What do we need to reorder?

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